Grooming: What Does "Paraben-Free" Even Mean?

Surveying the drug-store shelves, we've noticed that brands which make shave creams, deodorants, and moisturizers are increasingly ditching parabens — a group of preservative chemicals that's been used in creams and lotions for the last 70-odd years. Unless you're obsessed with reading labels (which, let's be honest, you are not), you have probably never even heard of these. Until, of course, companies began to tell you they're no longer using them. Should you even care?

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Well, they have been found in terrible things like cancer tumors. More so, there exists evidence that they're bad for the planet once washed off — waste manage facilities have been unable to clean them, and that's led to them being found in fish and other sea life. Still, no scientist has yet proven that parabens cause the negative effects — breast cancer, testicular cancer, obesity, a lower sperm count — with which they've been associated. And, ironically, parabens were originally added to grooming products in order to halt the growth of nasty bacteria and other malicious microbes that would otherwise love to develop within the dark and moist confines of your medicine cabinet. Most recently, in March, the Independent Cosmetics Ingredient Review (which the FDA cites) deemed that parabens are safe.

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Still, if you're at all concerned, there's good news: Personal lubricant companies seem to be the category-leader in removing this stuff from their products. And, more seriously, ingredients like grapefruit seed extract and potassium lactate have also been found to protect products from bacterial growth. These new solutions won't preserve your lotion as long as the parabens might, but they are mostly being used in higher-quality grooming products you'll want to burn through pretty quick anyway.